Brenda from Port Hardy, B.C. says that her wood burning insert smells of soot when it is not in use.The problem is obviously one of air coming down the chimney. Either the exhaust fans in the house are drawing air when there is no fire to maintain an upward draft, or the wind is twisted around on...
Cheryl in Kenton, Manitoba is worried about breaking tiles under her wood stove. Actually Cheryl, the tile itself can easily carry the weight, as long as it is not a pointed contact. If the feet are bent and do touch on one corner, put a metal plate about 2 inches square under the feet to sprea...
Chimneys : The Six CommandmentsChimney does not belong to the house, but to its appliance.More carefully sized to the heating appliance.Be insulated.Be tightly constructed.Be located within the heating envelope of the house.Terminate at or near the highest point of the building.The best resource...
Melissa sent in an e-mail worrying about the fact that the paint on the wall behind her wood burning fireplace is so hot that it is bubbling.That is too hot. Check the manufacturer's instructions if you have them -- each appliance has specified distances from combustible surfaces. Yours is ...
The key to efficient heating with a wood stove is not just having an air tight stove, but controlling completely the burn, even re-burning the gasses after they come off of the logs. It is easier to understand if we look inside an energy efficient stove. Check out this 3-D animation.
NEW CONSTRUCTION
In the interests of health and safety a number of trades are controlled by law, most particularly plumbing and electricity. The degree to which plumbing and electrical work are actually regulated varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. For instance almost all work performed in...
Rick from New Brunswick is having problems with his wood stove backdrafting and he wants to know if it will help to box in the chimney on the outside of the house. Backdrafting or difficult starting with wood burning appliances is often a problem and there are several entries in this database ...
Wood heating appliances get hot -- that's why we use them -- but they also burn down houses. They are only safe if you install them safely.
-- Let's start with the fascinating process of how wood burns;
-- and now let's see how that process can happen inside your walls or floors near woo...
Jon in Winchester, Ontario has a free standing natural gas stove and wants to get that heat distributed to the rest of the house.
First, what not to do
Do not try to put a grill in a return air duct of a forced air heating system over the stove as you see in the photo, especially forbidden fo...
More and more people are asking for powerful kitchen range hoods or bathroom exhaust fans. The logic appears simple, increase the power of the exhaust fan and get rid of pollutants quicker. In more and more modern homes which have been weather-stripped and sealed against cold air leaks and heat l...
